Caged Hearts
by Capricornkitty1975
Summary: When Joey, Yami, and Bakura are imprisoned in the Zoological Gardens for the Prevention of Social Anarchy, will anyone care?


Akeifa glared darkly, looking out of his cage of glass. He sat in the corner, in the shadows. He had grown tired of the stares. _I won't play their damn games. I'm not an animal._

Joey sighed, rolling over. The Keeper peeked in. "Best behavior today Wheeler, we have students. Shirt on." Getting up, Joey put the standard issued gray long sleeve shirt on. He didn't feel like fighting today.

"Freak, get up. There's a tour coming." Yami opened an eyebrow, his tri colored hair defiantly standing up, even when he was lying down. Ignoring the Keeper, Yami stayed in bed. Walking in, the Keeper kicked Yami in the side. "I said get up." he hissed. Wincing, Yami stood and slipped on his clothes. Yet another fucking broken rib. Great.

"Today class, we are going to the Zoological Gardens for the Prevention of Social Anarchy. I hope you all have your permission slips." The sensei smiled at the small white haired boy who came up, giving a slip of paper to her. He bowed, going back to his seat.

Ryou Bakura sat back down quietly. When the sensei called them to line up, the teen did so, quietly. Standing next to his best friend Yugi, he tried to appear happy to be going on the field trip, but he had his trepidations.

"You okay, Ryou?" Yugi asked.

Ryou nodded. "Yes...I just am quite worried about where we are going. What if there is an escape?"

Yugi nodded thoughtfully, eyes big. "I'm sure it's secure or they wouldn't be taking a bunch of high schoolers there. Think of all the lawsuits."

Ryou nodded, unconvinced. Climbing on the bus, he sat down behind Yugi. Thankfully, Marik and Malik were in a different class and would be going on this trip on a different day. The Zoo wanted to keep the classes small, so the three Junior classes were going on back to back days. Ryou hoped the Malik and Marik would behave themselves when they went...

Looking forward, he noticed that many of his classmates were snuggled up to their significant others. Ryou sighed. He was happy for his friends, but wondered if he would ever have that happiness...

Seto pulled out his laptop, intent on working some more. He had just a few more paragraphs of this proposal to do. He had to get it done. This stupid school did not seem to understand that he had more important things to do than go visit a zoo. Shaking his head, cobalt eyes studied the screen, long fingers typing efficiently.

Walking down the long corridor, the teens were conscientiously studying the subjects on display behind glass. The zookeeper was explaining each as they moved down. Stopping at a glass case, she turned, her brown hair bobbing as her smile _never_ left her face.

"And this subject committed a serious assault, earning him a life sentence in the Zoo." Knocking on the glass with her knuckles, the blonde boy looked up, honey eyes staring at them, defiant. "The most horrific aspect of this was that the assault was on his own father. The father almost didn't make it."

Seto raised a hand, squinting at her name tag. "Uh, Anzu, is it? Why did he commit it?"

Anzu kept that infuriating smile on her face. "It doesn't matter. He was found guilty of assault, and put here to warn others."

Seto looked at the boy, who didn't look older than Seto. Noticing the scar on the boy's neck, he wondered if the scar was from the assault or the reason for it...

Looking up, he saw that the group had moved on. Giving one last look at the boy, he followed the group.

Yugi was walking, taking everything in. He wasn't really comfortable with this, but it's the way it had always been, and crime was down, so he guessed it was working. Suddenly, Ryou poked him in the ribs. "Yugi, _look!_ " Yugi glanced up and about fell backwards. His twin was in the glass, looking out defiantly.

"And this, Subject 122675 is in for kidnapping. He had a lengthy juvenile record; however, what secured his residence in the Zoo was that he kidnapped his own little half-brother, going to do Ra knows what to him. Luckily, he was found and the brother reunited with his family. He is committed to the Zoo for life as well."

Yugi gasped; it was like looking in a mirror. Catching crimson eyes, he couldn't help but stare. The crimson eyes stared back, defiant. Yugi's throat clenched, eyes wide. Ryou grabbed his hand, tugging him along. Yugi followed, but couldn't take his eyes off of 122675.

"And subject 122676 is in here for aggravated robbery." Frowning, Anzu peered into the room, tapping on the glass. Getting no response, she touched her earpiece. "122676." After a few moments, a low buzz was heard, and then a savage looking white haired man was pushed out into the light, holding his side. Glaring at them all, he spit at the glass. Two guards walked out, electric rods in place. Right in front of the teens, the guards beat the white haired man mercilessly, electricity buzzing through the thief's body. Ryou gasped in dismay.

As the teens quietly sat on the bus on the way home, Ryou's mind kept wandering back to the thief. Why must they beat him like an animal, just because he was caged? While certainly not condoning the thief's actions there was still the need to treat people humanely. Sneaking a look over at Yugi, Yugi was staring out the window, earphones in his ears.

As they filed off the bus, Ryou and Yugi started heading for home. Ryou usually stayed with Yugi since his family was out of town so much. After going inside and slipping off their shoes, they went upstairs to relax. No homework today because of the field trip. Both flopped down on the bed. After a few moments, Ryou tapped Yugi's shoulder. Yugi looked over, pulling his earbud out. "What's up, Ryou?"

"Don't you feel bad about what we saw today?" Ryou asked quietly.

Yugi looked at the ceiling thoughtfully. "Yea, I do..but, there's a reason for what they do, right? They are keeping us safe, aren't they?"

Ryou looked doubtful. "I don't know."

Yugi got up, going over to his laptop and powering it on. "Let's see if we can find out anything about any of them. Maybe that will help us figure this out." Ryou nodded, pulling up a chair. As Yugi started plugging in search terms, he looked to Ryou. "Do you remember any numbers or anything?"

Ryou thought back. "I believe the thief was 122676." Yugi nodded, still searching. Frowning, he typed something else in.

After about fifteen minutes, Yugi sat back. "I can't find anything."

Ryou frowned. "That seems odd."

Yugi nodded, the snapped his fingers. Rummaging through his backpack, he pulled out a brochure. Skimming through it, he smiled. "Visiting Hours are every Saturday, 8am-1pm. Visits are 20 minutes unless you get special dispensation for a longer visit." He smiled up at Ryou. "Let's just go ask them. What's the worst they can do, not answer us?"

Ryou mulled this over in his mind. Chocolate eyes set in determination, he nodded his head. "Agreed. We will go this Saturday.

"Okay Freaks and Geeks, enjoy your socializing time." The keeper's voice echoed as a door on each side of 122675's cell opened. 122674 came in, but 122676 did not.

Yami looked at Joey. "Are you okay?" he asked quietly. Joey shrugged, not answering. About then Akeifa slunk in, leaning in a corner. Yami looked to him. "The rod again?" Akeifa nodded.

Yami frowned. Sighing, he sat down. This was horrifically unfair. Looking to his two friends, he put his hands in his hair.

The rest of the week passed quickly. Luckily, neither Marik nor Malik got arrested on their field trip. Ryou and Yugi said nothing of their plans, just quietly went about their business. Saturday morning, they got and went to the Zoo. Upon arrival, they filled out the appropriate forms and went through the appropriate background checks. They were shown to a small white room with a table and a piece of glass, as well as a telephone. Both boys waited, not knowing what to expect...

122676 was the first shoved into the room with the glass. Noticing the boy looking at him, he glared, hair wild, sitting down. Ryou picked up the headset as he had been instructed to do. 122676 did as well. "What the fuck are you and what the fuck do you want?" the wild haired boy growled.

Ryou swallowed. "Well, uh..my name is Ryou...what's yours?" he asked politely. Blinking, the silverette shook his head.

"Akeifa. Why the fuck do you want to know?" He was looking suspiciously at Ryou.

"I...I just wanted to know _why_." Ryou asked shyly, afraid he would be taken out of the room soon due to Akeifa's language.

"Why what?" Dark eyes studied Ryou.

"Why you robbed someone." Ryou whispered quietly.

"Why the fuck you care?" Akeifa crossed his arms, holding the telephone by his ear and shoulder.

"I..I don't know." Ryou answered truthfully.

"Not that it matters, but my brother was starving, and I was trying to get money to buy him food. It didn't fucking matter anyways, I found out he was killed in a drive-by while I was trying to get food." Akeifa's face darkened even more.

"I..I am so sorry." Ryou said quietly, feeling pity for this boy he didn't know. "And I am sorry you are hurt in here."

Akeifa raised an eyebrow. "Kid, you are way too innocent. Don't ever get arrested, or you'll be fucked." Hanging up the phone, he turned and walked over to the door, knocking on the plexiglass. "I'm ready to fuckin' go back now!" he screamed.

Ryou watched him, concern on his face.

Sitting down, Yugi frowned. His feet didn't touch the ground. He picked up the phone...there were no buttons, so he guessed it was an automatic pickup. Noticing the door open, he looked up. Walking in, clothed in grey, 122675 sat down, face confused. Picking up the phone, a rich baritone came through. "Can I help you?"

"Uh..h..hi. My name's Yugi...nice to m..meet you." he stuttered.

"You aren't one of those crazy stalkers who want a penpal, are you?" The confusion was obvious in his tone.

"Uh..n..no. I just..Why would you kidnap your brother?" Yugi asked, looking at 122675.

"The name is Yami. And why should I tell you...you wouldn't believe me." Yami crossed his arms, looking away.

"T..try me." _Why the hell do I keep stuttering? I mean, he's attractive, but he's in there and I am out here and nothing will come of it and wait...do I want something to come of it? No, of course not, oh my Ra, I am rambling..._

"My stepfather was raping my brother. I was trying to protect Atem." Yami said quietly. Yugi gasped.

"Why, then he should be in there, not you!" Yugi gaped, putting a hand on the glass.

Yami looked surprised at Yugi. "Why would you believe me?"

Yugi shrugged. "I'm a nobody. You have no reason to lie to me."

Something cracked inside Yami. Smiling gently, he whispered. "You are not a nobody." The guard appeared then, indicating the time was up. Looking back, Yami said quickly, "Come visit again?"

Yugi smiled. "You bet."

The blonde boy was already sitting at the table as Seto strode in. Picking up the phone, Seto didn't wait. "Why did you do it?"

"Why da ya wanna know, Moneybags?" The honey eyes defiant.

"Good, you know how I am. My reasons are my own. Now, why did you do it?" Seto's cold cobalt eyes studied the teen.

"My dad was beatin' da shit out of me an' my sister Serenity. I was tryin' ta protect her." Eyes dark, he looked down. "But I couldn't. She died."

Seto stared at him for a few moments. He then put the phone down and walked out of the room.

Ryou and Yugi had talked about what had happened at their visits. Ryou had decided that visiting was a good idea, and signed up for weekly visits for Akeifa, like Yugi did for Yami. Neither told the captives, for fear, in Ryou's case, that Akeifa would say no, or in Yugi's case that something would come up and Yugi couldn't come some weeks and Yami would be disappointed.

Ryou wasn't disappointed. For the first two months, Akeifa came (though Ryou thought that was because of being forced to) and said no more than eight words in eight visits. Ryou had to think of things to do, so he started by talking about himself. That lasted eighteen minutes. After that, he was able to get the word "Dark" in response to his request for things Akeifa liked. So after that he brought dark poetry, Stephen King, H.P. Lovecraft, and such and read to Akeifa. _Well,_ Ryou thought, _at least he doesn't hang up on me._

Yami on the other hand was a true gentleman and very polite. He seemed to enjoy Yugi's company, always thanking him profusely for coming. They talked at each visit about what they enjoyed to do. Upon finding out that Yami enjoyed Duel Monsters, Yugi sent him some cards to make a deck and suggested he bring his deck and they could play through the glass. Visits passed quickly and enjoyably as the two doppelgangers got to know each other.

The blonde haired boy sat alone, trying to quell envy as he heard about visits his friends had. He enjoyed the letters he received, and he wrote back. He just didn't understand why his new friend couldn't find the time to visit. The letters were nice, but talking to a real live person was good, too. He tried to appease himself with the rationale that Seto was busy, but it still hurt. He reread the letters until the paper was fragile. He sighed. He was falling in love with his penpal.

Yugi looked at Ryou. He had no clue why he was in the Principal's office nor why Ryou was. If there was ever a perfect student, it was Ryou. As both teens nervously waited, a door opened and Seto walked in as well. The two petite teens looked at one another. Seto stood by impassively until the Principal came in.

"Mr. Motou, Mr. Bakura, Mr, Kaiba. Good of you all to make it. I have had a request from the Zoological Gardens for the Prevention of Social Anarchy. It seems they have been getting pressure from some social groups to be more humane to the subjects there. They have asked that I choose three students to try to ... interact ... with some of their more difficult cases. You three have been specifically requested.

Yugi and Ryou's eyes grew wide. Seto stood by impassively.

"Here are your permission slips designating your subject. Please have them signed and returned."

Handing them to each, Seto pulled out a pen, signing it and returning it to the Principal without looking at it. "I'm emancipated." he said simply.

Ryou and Yugi looked at their forms. Ryou's said "Subject 122676" while Yugi's said "Subject 122675". Both teens smiled and couldn't wait to get the forms signed. However, upon arriving home, Yugi did not have as easy of a time. Yugi's grandfather flat out refused because Yami was a "no good kidnapping juvenile delinquent...if he kidnapped his brother, he'd have no problem kidnapping you." Ryou's family felt much the same way, but Ryou was able to convince them that Akeifa was _just_ a thief...and perhaps Ryou could help Akeifa find God (his parents attended church religiously)...finally they relented and signed the form.

The next morning, Ryou turned in his permission slip. Yugi had walked with him to the office, a frown on his face. After coming out, Ryou looked to Yugi. "Aren't you going to turn your slip in? How long did it take you to convince Gramps? I am just happy that my parents were home last night from their trip so I could get it sign...Yugi? Yugi?" He waved a hand in front of Yugi's face.

Yugi looked up. "Huh? Oh, wait, I gotta pee...see you in class." He ran to the bathroom. Going into a stall, he shut the door, pulled out a pen and the permission slip, and scribbled his Grandfather's name. "I'm sorry Granpa." he whispered. Sitting for a minute or two, he flushed and went out, washing his hands to keep up the ruse, then walking out, he went and dropped off his slip at the office.

Waiting, Yugi found his hands sweaty. Seeing Ryou, he smiled. Ryou smiled, holding a few books. Yugi held up his duel cards. Seto walked in, nothing in his hands. The guard walked out. "Here's a panic button." He handed each a small button. "Things get crazy...push it." Nodding, Yugi followed the guard, the other two following him. Coming to 122674, the door opened, and Seto went inside. Yugi was dropped off next, followed by Ryou. The guard shook his head...this was _not_ a good idea, no matter what the politicians said about PR...

Joey looked up as Seto walked in. He swallowed. Seto was just as handsome as Joey remembered. He made no move, as he didn't want this to backfire. Having companionship outside of his other inmates would be nice. Smiling shyly, "Hi."

Seto sat down, after having twisted the chair around. "I'm getting you out of here." Joey looked up, eyes wide.

"What?" he blinked. Seto handed him a paper. Blinking, Joey stared at it.

 _Granting Pardon to: Joseph Wheeler_

"Get your stuff, Wheeler...you're out of here."

Yugi walked in, smiling at Yami. Yami stood up, smiling warmly at the smaller boy. "I was told I cannot touch you, otherwise, I would give you a hug." Yami smiled.

Yugi sighed and sat down. "I brought my duel deck, in case you want to play face to face." He smiled.

Yami grinned. "I would like that, Aibou." Sitting at his bare table, he pulled his deck out of a small locker that held a sparse collection of clothing. Pulling out his deck, he sat down and started shuffling.

Yugi grinned. "It's time to duel."

Ryou walked in, Akeifa's dark eyes watching him from a corner. "Hello, Akeifa. I brought some more books by Stephen King, since you seemed to enjoy those." Sitting them down, he turned to Akeifa.

Akeifa slunk out of the shadows, flipping a chair around and sitting in it. "Why?" he demanded.

"Why what?" Ryou asked genuinely confused.

"Why me...why here? I'm sure you have other places you could be..what, are you getting community service credit or something?"

Ryou smiled kindly. "No, I'm not. I just...I genuinely _like_ you Akeifa."

Akeifa just stared at Ryou like Ryou had grown a second head.

Ryou sighed. "Someday, I hope you will be able to see your own true worth."

Blinking, Joey walked out with Seto, with a small bag no bigger than a lunch bag that had all his belongings in the world. Looking to Seto, he scratched the back of his head. "Uh...tanks." Holding out a hand to shake, Seto ignored it as a sleek limousine pulled up.

"Wheeler, get in. You're staying with me." Seto climbed in the car without another word. Looking around, Joey followed obediently, completely confused about this turn that life had taken.

Ryou and Yugi enjoyed their weekly personal visits with the subjects. Seeing as how this was looking to be a success, it was being considered to be expanded to other areas of the Zoo. Yugi skipped in, smiling when he got to see Yami. Yami smiled at him. "Aibou, you look pleased."

Yugi scrunched his nose up at Yami. "Aibou?" he asked.

Yami turned red. "I am sorry...it means partner..I should have asked first. I apologize."

Yugi turned red as well, and smiled at Yami. "N..no...that's okay..I just didn't know what it meant. I like it." He smiled at Yami. "I...I also have something else." Yugi held out a paper. Yami grabbed it and looked at it. Eyes blinking, he looked up at Yugi.

"Parole?" Yami whispered.

Yugi grinned, shaking his head up and down.

Yami's face broke into a huge grin, and he grabbed Yugi, kissing him passionately. Taken by surprise, but not unhappy, Yugi kissed him back after a moment.

Pulling back, Yami just looked at Yugi. "B..but how? I was told I would never make parole?"

Yugi smiled. "I did some investigation and took some facts to the parole board. After their investigation they agreed you could be paroled out to my house as a home plan...that is, if you want to." Yugi smiled shyly.

"Aibou...I would love that." Yami smiled happily.

"Akeifa, just accept help. My father is an important man in politics, and he pulled a few strings to make his son happy...even if that was because he left his son home alone too much." Ryou grumbled, handing the papers to Akeifa.

Akeifa looked at the paper. _Sentence completed._ It had stamped in red lettering across the top of his sentence and judgement papers. Squinting, Akeifa noticed that it also said "Stealing" instead of "Armed Robbery." Raising an eyebrow, he looked at Ryou. Ryou shrugged.

"You're free."

Akeifa walked out behind Ryou. After stepping foot out of the Zoo, Ryou looked at Akeifa. "What is the first thing you are looking forward to doing, now that you are not in the Zoo?" Ryou asked kindly.

Akeifa looked at Ryou. "Take you on a date."


End file.
